Hearts of Kyber
by Doraslayer1
Summary: In the wake of the Jedi Purge, newly knighted Jedi Ruby Rose and her motely crew of clones and a droid are saved by a bounty hunting mandalorian warrior.


"_For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times. Before the Empire. A young Jedi named Darth Vader, who was a pupil of mine until he turned to evil, helped the Empire hunt down and destroy the Jedi Knights."_

-Obiwan to Luke Skywalker, about Darth Vader.

-Planet Christophsis, 19 BBY

During the execution of Order 66.

Blaster fire filled the air.

It's been two minutes since most of Jedi Master Qrow Branwen and his Padawan Ruby Rose's clone platoon opened fire on them in an act of unprovoked betrayal, with only the lead squad of 20 clones led by Captain TK-9899, nicknamed Nines, stayed loyal to the two jedi and returned fire against their treacherous brothers.

Qrow had taken a bolt just below his sternum, burning a hole straight to his spine, scarring the heart and lungs. He knew he didn't have much time left and had ruby drag him to cover. Nines covered them with his DC-15A blaster rifle, taking potshots at any who dared aim at them. The clone nearest Ruby, Sergeant VC-8745, called 8-ball, following her and watching her back with his Z-6 rotary blaster. His battle buddy, TF-5866 aka Sixer, using his heavy plasma cannon trying to take out the enemy armor.

"Ruby.." Qrow painfully choked out.she whipped her head around after deflecting incoming blaster fire with her lightsaber.

"Qrow, you're badly hurt, rest please" she said with her voice ripe with worry.

"Listen Ruby, I'm not getting out of here, I need you to listen."

"Don't say that! Trust in the Force! We'll get off Christophsis. We'll-'

"Ruby!"

With Qrow's pained shout, the scene became silent save for the sounds of blaster fire, plasma cannons, and the sounds of death and war around them.

"We don't have time, I'm sorry kid. Jus-just stay still."

_"We are all Jedi."_

_"Master, stop please."_

_"The Force speaks through us. Through our actions, the Force proclaims itself and what is real."_

"Qrow, please!"

"_Today we are here to acknowledge what the Force has proclaimed."_

He ignites his lightsaber, lowering it carefully either side of her head and severing her padawan braids before collapsing barely conscious.

"_By the right of the Council, by the will of the Fo-force, I dub thee Jedi, Knight of the Republic."_

After he finished the ritual, blood loss finally took effect and he slipped into unconsciousness, his heart falling still only seconds later. Ruby couldn't move from grief as tears trailed down her cheeks, not until the comms officer JS-8542, aka Jazz, shook her shoulder.

"Commander Rose, ma'am, I managed to break through the comm jam, help is on the way ETA 15 minutes."

"Oh..o-ok, thank you Jazz. Did they say who they were?"

"Err.. No ma'am, something about being a friend?"

"I...see"

"Ma'am? Are you alright?"

"I..I..I'll be fine, we have bigger problems"

Ruby swallowed the lump in her throat, grabbing her fallen teachers lightsaber from where it fell. As she stood, she felt the ebbing of darkness in her heart. The anger, pain, fear, hate building, these traitors took away her master, the man she thought a father figure, there had to be payback. A nearby blaster impact snapped her out of her dark stupor. Nines dropped next to her with a wounded thigh. They were losing. "Ma'am, there's too many, we cant hold out for 15 minutes, we have-"

"We have to Nines, we can, trust me."

"Ma'am…, We'll do our best."

"That's all I ever asked Nines"

As they talked, the trooper nearest the three took a bolt to the chest and died with a scream. Ruby tightened her grip on her saber, igniting the blue blade and leaping into combat, trying to protect her clones. Sixer ran out of plasma charges for her cannon, and so he gathered as many thermal detonators as he could and ran into the biggest thicket of enemies he could find, giving Ruby one last salute before he and all around him were consumed by the blast.

Horrified and distraught at his sacrifice, Ruby for a moment lost herself in her anger, reaching out with the force, and gripping the enemy commander with a telekinetic chokehold, lifting her former subordinate a foot of the ground and crushing his throat in a second. Ruby continued channeling the dark side to amplify her powers at the cost of her control, cutting down many of the traitorous soldiers.

It wasn't until she heard the sound of Jazz calling her on ther communicator that she snapped out of her anger induced rampage.

"Ma'am! Reinforcements are here! They're entering the atmosphere now! Fall back!"

With a nod, Ruby returned to their trench as she heard the telltale sounds of a ship approaching at supersonic speeds towards their position. She took a quick headcount of her remaining clones, she only had seven still combat ready, two injured, and one critically injured, of her original 20 in the lead squad. Suddenly she was glad Qrow insisted the lead squad had their obedience chips removed, despite her heart sinking at the heavy losses.

She could almost see the ship, a red and grey speck in the distance, fast approaching, however not following any republic flight path, but that was understandable give the situation. Deciding not to risk her clones she grabbed a fallen soldier's blaster and started firing back. Her aim was terrible, as she was more usd to her saber, a shame she used to be a sharpshooter, but it served to be good suppression.

She hard a hard time tracking time, but it wasn't long till the ship arrived. It became very clear, it was not a republic or CIS vessel. Rather a heavily modified, armed and armored, Corellian YT-1450 light freighter with a massive turbolaser battery on its port side, the cockpit being on the opposite side. Said battery rotated and began firing its powerful viridian beams of destruction at a rapid fire pace, melting and vaporizing all those unfortunate to be caught in its crosshairs. 'Old friend indeed' thought ruby as she recognized this ship. "_This is the Crocea Mors, finally called in the favor, eh Ruby?"_

AN:

I own neither Star Wars nor RWBY. Star Wars is owned by Disney, All rights resevered. RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth, all rights reserved.


End file.
